Just a Soldier
by Bravsoul
Summary: How...? How did this all happen? All I wanted was to live my life in peace. Instead, I get thrusted into something that I didn't want to become a part of and was expected great things from me. But how could I do that? I'm just a soldier! What the hell can I do to save us all? ...When did my life become so complicated?
1. The Life, in which, how it all went down

**Hey guys! Now, I know what you're think. ' _Dude, where the hell have you been?! Are you dead?! What happened?!'_ Well, let me be the first to tell you that I'm not dead! Well, physically, I mean. You see, I lost my motivation for writing stories or writing new chapters for awhile, until something hit me. Like hard. I realized that I still had so many new ideas that I wanted to put into words and I didn't want any of you guys to be bored our of your minds. So I brainstormed a couple of ideas that I wanted to kick off, but none of them really just... you know 'hit' me. Until I saw the trailer for the new game 'Fire Emblem Warriors'. It seems like something out of a cliche, but I swear to you guys that something just lit a fire in my mind the minute I saw this trailer!**

 **And so, this was the result of my long hiatus.**

 **Now, keep in mind that college has already started for me and things are already going in flames as we speak. However, I'm not yet defeated by the flames of society as of yet! What I can do is hold off the flames for a while until then and continue to put my ideas into words. My schedule is light, but I wouldn't count on it being like this forever. Something unexpected will always be waiting around every corner. In any case, I will be working on the new chapters for this stories and for the other ones that I've done, so expect long periods of time between chapters.**

 **With that said, thank you guys for your patience and the time for reading this story.**

 **See you guys later!**

 **P.S.- Also, you may critique this story if you wish. After all, the path to a great story lies within the reader.**

 **P.P.S.- This story takes place before the Awakening story, not the one in Warriors. Just thought I cleared that up first.**

 **Summary: An ordinary man enlisted into the army in hopes to gain the funds he needs to live his quiet and peaceful life. Instead, the very first thing that happens to him was something that even he doesn't expect to happen.**

* * *

Do you crave for attention by chance? Do you want be known to the world for what you did? For the achievements that you've done for society, for the tasks that you've undertake or are you just some person that wants people to notice you? Do you want to go down in history as the person that has saved the world from utter destruction from a god or a deity that was hellbent on destroying mankind as we know it?

If so, then you're looking for the wrong type of guy to be reading about.

Me? I'm just a soldier. Just following my orders to the letter. I never did anything astonishing, awesome or anything like that to get attention. Sure, there are some people that go above and beyond the call of duty to do whatever it takes to serve their king or queen. Afterwards, they get rewarded for their heroic deed and are offered the most luxurious state that the king or queen might allowed. It might sound good and all, but to me, it's only a hindrance.

Now, all of you might be thinking to yourself, ' _Where the hell is this going?_ ' Please, calm yourself down and let me tell you something from my past.

Before I became a soldier, I was just a farmer living with my family in a village near the outskirts of the capital, Ylisstol. The only family I had was my mother and my sister. My father passed away when I was just five years old and my sister joined the militia before our father died. My sister wanted to go see the world and come back telling stories from her travels. However, after learning about our father's death, she didn't come back home in a while nor did she write us a letter. A year went by and a letter came by from our sister. Apparently, she was to be given nobility into some noble house for the great things she's done for the country. Naturally, she accepted the title of nobility and with the letter came a few gold coins to help us.

I've never seen my mother look so happy in my life.

Anyways, while my family is outgoing in a way, I've always been the reclusive one, never doing anything note-worthy nor did I do anything that would upset anyone. In fact, I've secluded myself from the others since the age of ten. The reason for this is because I wanted peace to do my work that my father left behind. You see, my father told me something important, something that I've taken to heart before his death.

' _Peace is an elusive thing that all of us want. The only thing that stands between us and peace is ourselves.'_

Now, my father wasn't well known in the village because he was always in that little shed that was next our home. Every day, my father would bring something from that shed and show it to me and I always was excited to see what he made. He'd promised me that he teach me how to make it, but obviously, he didn't. Instead, my father left behind several papers of different things on them and a notebook detailing what they were and how they work. I've spent the duration of my childhood learning about what's on the paper and learning how to make them with my hand. Soon enough, I've also learned how to make other things and used them for my own benefit.

" _Seriously, where is this going?"_ Just shut up already! I'm getting there!

Few years went by and I became of age where I can go to the militia if I wanted to. I chose not to at first, but after my mother begging me to go join the militia, I had no choice but to go. There are exactly two reasons why I went to join the militia. The first reason was because of my mother as I didn't want to make her cry. The second reason… I needed money.

You see, while I was working on my projects, I came across a problem. Well, several problems in fact. I needed money for the materials for my projects. Without them, I can't get any of them to work without the required materials. At first, I thought of just forging some of the natural materials that was on the outskirts of the village, but I immediately perish that thought as I remember that sort of thing would attract attention to me and I didn't need that. Another thought came to mind as I could sell some of my projects to someone that was willing to buy them, but no one came to mind. I could just sell to them 'her', but she doesn't come around these parts as I've heard the rumors, so the only thing I could do is to join the militia.

Plus, I didn't want to make my mother sad, you understand that right?

In any case, I joined the military and went through the training course that they had us do on the day of recruiting. Afterwards, me and the other recruits were escorted to the capital, where we would be officially be made soldiers of Ylisstol. In my mind, I expect that my life would be mundane and peaceful, where I don't have any attention on me. .

After the inaugurations of the new recruits, we headed back to the mess hall that was next to the barracks for some lunch. I situated myself alone at a table that was well away from everyone else. From where I am sitted, I could see the soldiers that were inaugurated with me just chatting with each other, all of them doing so with a smile on their faces like nothing's wrong with the world.

Honestly, it just pisses me off to see them like that.

They don't know what they're getting into and they have no idea on what the battlefield may be like. I'm no different from the rest of these guys, but even I know what I'm getting into when I joined the military. After I finished my lunch, I immediately left the mess hall and headed outside to where I can find a quiet place to work on my various projects. No one seemed to notice when I walked up and left nor did they seem to care. Either way, I considered a blessing in disguise.

We've been given the first day off to get the chance to look around the castle and the town as this is where we are to live for the duration of our time. I've taken the liberty to look for a place where I can work on my projects and soon enough, I found an abandoned shack that was just off away from civilization and where I can have my peace.

From there, I went to work.

* * *

Ever since he was recruited in the military, his life consists of guarding the entrance to the palace, going to the barracks to have lunch, coming back to the entrance and stood guard for a while and whenever he had a break, he would go to the shack and work on his projects in secret, only to be covered in soot when he got back. However, this came with a price as he could feel the stares behind his back. It didn't help that he was always wearing full armor wherever he walked. No one knew why he was covered in soot every time and rumors have speculated about him. One time, his captain had asked him why he was covered in soot and he would say that he was working on something, but never elaborate on it. The man did not wanted any more attention than he already on him.

As the weeks by, he could feel the stares of his fellow soldiers and the citizens around him, but he didn't pay them any mind. He knew that this was a small price to pay if he needed the funds for his projects.

However, he could feel the stares of everyone around him grow curiouser and curiouser as they were wondering what he was doing most of his time. It got to the point where he spent most of his break time in the shack than in the mess hall. Soon enough, everyone somewhat forgets about him. But one thing does remain that does talk about the man. A rumor, based on the activities of the man. That rumor was…

The Soulless Soldier.

That rumor was said to be that one soldier was always wearing a helmet never taking it off. If one should ever see him take off his helmet, they would forever be cursed by this soldier, never to feel anything again. When the rumor about the man spread through the castle, the man himself was furious that he was getting attention that he himself despise, but he calmed himself down as he reasoned that getting upset over something this small would only raise even more attention about him than ever and he didn't want that to ruin his projects. However, what he did not expect was someone to actively see what he was working on.

Turns out that person was a lot more important than he'd think.

* * *

"Haaa, as if the whole rumor deal is already bad enough, now I have endure more of the others stares at me. What happened to my normal life…?"

Currently, I'm walking towards the shack on the outskirts of the castle town, just about walking distance from the shack to the town. My peaceful like has been turned upside down as that rumor of me being a Soulless Soldier reached to practically everyone in the castle. Hell, even the royal family might have heard about that rumor by now.

Bah, nevermind them! I've got the money I need to help with my projects, I don't need any more attention on me than I already have! I've just managed to reach the shack when I saw a figure right outside of the shack. They had a cloak on, so I couldn't get a good look at their faces.

Gods be damn, has the rumor spread that far into the town already?!

Before they could see me, I quickly hid behind some bushes and peered over the bush to get a better look at the cloaked figure. Apparently, his stature looks to be of a young adult, but what kind of person are they, I have no idea. In any case, this could be a perfect opportunity to try out my latest creation. I quietly pulled out an object from my pouch and took one long look at it before I threw at the poor unsuspecting guy.

The object in question is nothing special. The design for the exterior was a wooden cylinder-shaped object with a short fuse at the top. It also had two blue stripes running sideways with the word 'FLASH' between the two. Using a match I dug out with the bomb, I quickly lit the fuse and threw it at the figure. When the bomb managed to land near the figure, they looked at the object that had landed near their feet before-!

 _BANG!_ " _Gah!"_

Using this opportunity, I quickly ran towards the figure, twisting their body towards the ground and grabbed their arm around their back, rendering them unable to move. They started to struggle against my grip, but a swift stab to the ground near their face shut them up. "Alright, listen up. I'm getting sick and tired of having everyone's attention on me. Especially with the rumor going on about me. So, here's what I want you to do. I'm going to let you up and you're going to walk away, pretending that you don't know, 'cause if you don't, there's a big chance where _I_ will make you pretend. Understand?"

"B-But…"

That voice… it sounds familiar…

Taking no chance for them to speak, I forcefully made them stand on their feet and turned them towards me. What I saw just blew my whole damn mind. The one that was in the cloak and standing in front of the shack…

Was the capital's very own royal princess. In other words, Lady Lissa.

"Ah, crap."

* * *

 _Journal Entry #1_

 _Finally, after being recruited into the military, I now have the funds I need to work on my projects. Sure I'll have to get used to everyone staring at me, but it's a small price to pay. In order for me to not get attention, I've decided to wear full body armor with a helmet to keep everyone's eyes away from me. Hopefully, it goes well._

 _I'm not sure what else to write down in this journal since it's only my first day here, so I'll have to keep this brief. However, I will say one thing. What my father said to me before he died… I still hold these words to my heart. Peace really is an elusive thing that all of us want, yet it's so far away from our reach. Until I reach my peace, I don't plan on dying just yet._

 _This is Joshua Normi, age 18. Before I joined the militia, I was a farmer and the son of a normal family._

 _Now, I'm a soldier to the country of Ylisstol._

 _Just a Soldier._


	2. My life, in which, no more quietness

**Hey guys! Welcome back to the second chapter of this story! In case if anyone was confused by that last chapter, that was only a prelude that is yet to come. We're still a bit of ways before we get into the main event of Awakening. However, let me assure this will be the last chapter of the prelude as I also wanted to get into the heart of the game already! Rest assure, after this, we'll be full on stop towards the main event, so look forward to it!**

 **With that said, thank you for taking the time to read this story! ENJOY!**

 **P.S.- About the reviews from last chapter, I'm wasn't forcing you guys to review this story. You may review if you wish, just saying if there's something wrong that needs to be checked or something that doesn't fit within the games premises.**

 **Now I'm done! Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Ever since Josh was recruited into the Ylisstol military, he had a schedule that he would always follow everyday. When the day started, he would wake up, go to the mess hall and have some breakfast. Once that's done, he would arm up in his full armor set, stand guard at the front of the entrance for a few hours before switching with another guard. Afterwards, once the day was done, he would go to the shack and work on his projects and come back in soot once again. However, there's been a change in his schedule.

Mainly, Lissa.

After the whole incident between the two, Lissa would always be waiting for Josh (with a cloak over her as to not raise suspicion towards her) whenever he had a break or his day was done and walk with him to the shack. This annoyed Josh to no end since this would bring even more attention to him than before, yet deep down, he knew that if he were to make a fuss over it and the princess's identity were to be known to the public, everyone would have their eyes on him and not in a good way.

So for now, he kept quiet about it but that doesn't mean he had to like it.

"So Josh. What sort of thing will you be making this time?" Josh would always hear Lissa ask that question every time they would walk to the shack. At one point, he was annoyed by the amount of questions Lissa would ask from that question, but over time, he just learned to tune her out, "Hey. Hey Josh? You're not doing that thing where you're ignoring me, are you?" Yet, even when he's ignoring her, Josh feels if he doesn't answer her quickly, it's going to get more annoying than it already was.

"As of right now, I'm thinking of making a weapon. Specifically, where I could do a lot more damage to an enemy from a range where they can't hit me." Josh explained to the princess after a full minute has passed.

"So… like a bow?"

"Something like that, but capable of dealing a lot more damage than just a bow. You see, what I'm thinking of is packing a volatile material into something throwable that will deal damage to an area in case if there's someone hiding in a corner waiting to ambush me. I'm also thinking of using said material and placing it in a tube where all I need to do is pull on something so that I can trigger it whenever I want." After Josh explanation, he looked over to Lissa and just as he expected, he could see in Lissa's look that she didn't get it at all. Sighing in despair, he elaborated. "Basically, what I threw at you, but instead of blinding you, I kill you." At that, Lissa 'ahh'd' in understanding before recoiling in fear.

Having finally gotten through to Lissa, Josh continued his trek to the shack with Lissa in tow. Both didn't speak for a time as Lissa was enjoying her time with Josh while Josh himself was thinking of different ways to apply the volatile material to the idea. Soon enough, they've reached the shack and it was still the same as ever.

When Josh visited the shack for the first time, it was run down with the walls looking a bit decay, the windows were all broken and it was overgrown. In the interior, it looked even worse as there were plants littering the general area. The floor looked like it was about to break just by taking a step inside. Not only that, the beam that supports the shack were all broken, save for at least two or three of them. How the shack was still standing, Josh had no idea.

Once Josh had the funds to work on his projects, the first thing that he did with the money was to rebuild the shack from the top to bottom. First, he completely destroyed the entire shack as the old one wasn't in a usable condition to begin with. Next, he hired some workers to help out rebuild the shack that he had destroyed and laid out the plans that he prewritten before he hired them. It took the workers and Josh to finish building the shack about a day or so to complete the construction.

The new shack kinda looks like the old one from before but the only difference is that the walls are a bit taller than before. The interior also was a bit taller as well with the support beams in place. Along with the interior were four rows of shelves that was half-way of the support beams. If Josh was to work on his projects in the future, he'll need a place where he could store them for his projects. On the left side holds nothing but some training dummies and some targets for Josh to test out his new creations and on the right holds a furnace where he would use it to create whatever metal he needs for his projects.

As soon as the shack was fully repaired, he placed traps around the shack in order to prevent anyone from approaching the shack. The only one that knows of the traps locations were Josh and the new one, Lissa. Once they've reached the shack, they carefully navigate through the traps, making sure that they don't set it off. Having reached the entrance, Lissa let out a breath that she didn't realize that she's been holding in. "Seriously? Man, this is why I don't want to do this. Just wait out here for once, alright?"

"No way! I'm not going to-!" Lissa didn't get to say what she was about to say when Josh entered the shack and shut it behind him. A _CLINK_ noise can be heard from the inside indicating he had just locked Lissa out. Lissa stood there shocked as he just locked her out once again. "Haaaa. Not again… Oh well. I might as well watch him from the window again." Lissa walked over to the window that was just her height and watched Josh do his work.

* * *

"Damn woman… doesn't she know when enough's enough? Probably runs in the entire family, god damn it…" As Josh continues to grumble to himself about his predicament, he diligently worked on his current project. Behind him were the shelves that had decorated the entire shack. In them were various of materials that he had gathered over the course of his job. From herbs to strange powders, to very dangerous materials, everything in the shelves was necessary for him to complete his projects. In front of Josh was littered with various of tools used for his projects. Some of which seems

As of late, he's busy currently working on that project he told Lissa prior to their arrival. In front of him lies several parts that slightly represents a weapon. A small tube, a wooden frame to fit the tube with a trigger at the bottom and several small metal bands lay flat on the table. "Now, if I do this right, I should be able to create the first ever explosive weapon that is not magic based! That is, if it can work…" Josh then assembled the parts onto the wooden frame and when it was finished, it looked really small, almost small enough that Lissa could hold it. Then, he filled the tub with some black powder and loaded it with a metal ball. Afterwards, Josh stood up from his desk and walked over to the left side of the shack.

After setting up the dummy, he moved away from the dummy until he was at a considerable distance and aimed the new weapon at the dummy. "Let's see if this works." Carefully aiming his newly created weapon at the dummy, he opened fired.

 _BOOM!_

Instead of doing what Josh wanted the new weapon to do, it exploded in Josh's hand, burning and possibly damaging his hands. Luckily, he was still wearing his gauntlets and his helmet when he entered the shack so it absorbed most of the damage. However, he still had several burns and a few cuts on his hands to feel the pain from that explosion. "Well… I'm just going to put that as… 'Work-in-Progress' then… Oww…" Josh was trying his best not to scream in pain as evident that his face was contorted into a pained expression. This did not go unnoticed as Lissa was pounding on the door and wanting in since Josh's hand was burnt. Seeing Lissa wanting in due to his burnt hand, he slowly made his way towards the door while holding his hand close to his chest. After unlocking the door, he opened the door for Lissa to hurry in and quickly closed the door behind him. Soon enough, they were back at the desk with Lissa holding a staff near Josh's hand while Josh was leaning his other arm watching Lissa do her magic.

"Honestly, do you do this all the time? I've lost track on how many times you've injured yourself like this." Lissa scolded at Josh. Josh, on the other hand, just shrugged indicating that he too also lost track of how many times did this happen. Since the first time they've meet, Josh let Lissa see the interior and like everyone else that sees something new, Lissa was shocked, to say the least. However, that quickly changed when Josh attempted to try out his latest creation and it ended up blowing up both of Josh's hands. Josh was very lucky that Lissa had her staff with her, less he loses both of his hands altogether. "There, that should do it. Do you feel anything with that hand?"

Josh moved his hand and flex with his fingers for a few minutes. "Yeah, I can feel them. I can also remember feeling your chest when we first meet. So flat like an anvil." Josh was meet with a slap to his face, but instead Lissa was the one ended up getting her hand hurt, "Shouldn't have done that princess. Did you forget I was wearing my helmet or something?"

"SHUT UP! I'M STILL MAD AT YOU FOR DOING THAT TO ME! WHO DOES THAT TO ANYONE?! YOU STUPID PERVERT!"

"Obviously someone that was trying to piss someone off so that they'll leave them alone, in which that person is finally alone, i.e. me.. And also, if I was a pervert, I'd have you strip down to your undercloth if I wanted to." The only thing Josh got was another slap to the face, in which the same result happened, "If you're really that mad at me, you know where the door is." With that, Josh turned back to project, paying no mind to Lissa.

While Lissa was mad at Josh for mentioning their first encounter and for saying something like that, Lissa couldn't help but sigh as she continued to watch Josh work. So far, Josh had tried to get rid of her by using whatever means necessary. For example, he'd tried to insult her family, grope her chest and so on and so forth. Lissa was furious whenever Josh tried to do something to her, however she never did leave his side at all. No matter what Josh did to Lissa, she would always be right by Josh. She could see the loneliness that was in his eyes whenever he was working on his projects.

It only made her more determined to be by his side.

"So… what was that sound? I've never heard something like that." Lissa asked Josh after a few minutes of silence.

"Remember that project I was talking about recently?" Lissa nodded, "Well, the end result was that I end my opponent in one shot without using my sword on them. I think I'll call it… a gun. Has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?"

Lissa looked at the broken gun that laid on the table, thinking about what had just transpired minutes before. "But if the gun was suppose to do what you said it would do, then why did it explode like that?"

"I'm not quite sure myself," Josh adapted a thinking pose as he explained. "But I do have a theory or two as to why the gun didn't work. First, it's either the amount of gunpowder I've put into the gun and when the hammer strikes the pan of the gun, it exploded." Josh holded the broken gun to Lissa so that she could get a better look at it, "Another theory I have is that I must've placed some parts of the gun in the wrong place. I'll have to build it again from scratch again if I'm to get more information from the gun. You see, the way this gun works is that it needs gunpowder, this black powder right here." Josh placed the broken gun back onto the table and picked up a pouch from a shelf and upon opening it was the powder itself, "When one is using the gun, they would need to fill the gun with the powder inside of the barrel of the gun so that they could fire whatever the gun has inside of it. The hammer of the gun has a bit of flint in order for the gun to spark that gunpowder and use the blast force from that gunpowder to push the projectile out of the gun. Hmmm, now that I think about it could be due to the amount of gunpowder I placed inside of the gun…" Josh muttered the last part to himself as he went back to his theories.

Lissa looked at the gun with fascination as she took in every detail that the gun had to offer. The weird metal bands, to the weird metal… thing, it's a very fine piece to have! Although… "Say, why don't you show this to everyone? I bet you'll get a lot more money to help with your projects and-"

"NO WAY."

Lissa was shocked to hear Josh take a grave serious tone in his voice and was even more scared when Josh gave a deadly glare from his helmet. "If there's one thing I hate the most, it's attention. It's distracting me from doing any of my projects and if anyone were to know of my projects, then there's no doubt in my mind that I'll gain even more attention to me than before. The only reason why I'm letting you come with me is that you heal me whenever one of my creations goes haywire, so consider yourself lucky." Lissa never did hear Josh speak like that since they've meet. Sure, he would be annoyed and sarcastic whenever Lissa would ask questions among questions, but when something like attention is called to Josh, he would do whatever it takes to destroy it so that he'll have peace.

Still, Lissa felt a bit sad that all she was nothing but a convenience to him. However, that did not dissuade Lissa as she was even more determined to stay by his side, to show him that this was not the way that peace was not meant to be this way. Hearing Josh exhale in frustration, he left the broken gun on the table, standing up from his chair and walking to the door. "Well, today has been… fruitful. I'm going back to the barracks. You should head back to the castle as well princess." Lissa saw no objection to that and hurried over to the door. She gave one final look at the broken gun on the table before heading out.

* * *

It was another ordinary day, just me guarding the entrance to the castle like any other soldier that gets sent here. The other guy that was with me looked like he was about to pass out from the heat. I can't blame him really, the weather today is extremely hot today. I guess we're entering a hot climate for a while. Maybe I should create something cold to help combat the heat or something…

"Hey you!"

Huh? Who was that? I turn my head to see some guy with long flowing blond hair wearing the standard armor set coming towards me. The way that he's walking towards me suggests that he's a noble that got put here due to some recommendation or something. What's this guy's deal?

"So you're that infamous Soulless Soldier, aren't you?" Please go away, "Hmph! The way that you're acting suggests that you are that person! Then allow me to introduce myself!" The guy then did a flourish twirl and during that twirl, he pulled out a bronze sword from his sheath and did some sort of pose where he pointed his sword towards the sky. "I'm Sir Godfrey! The one and only true soon-to-be knight of Ylisstol!"

…

…

…

Can I go back to the barracks now?

"Haha! Are you impressed? You should be as this is a one time deal for you sir! However, this is not the only reason why I've come to meet you." This… Godfrey guy then had this serious look on his face as he takes his battle stance… Wait, what? "You, with your impudent presence fouling this sacred castle…! In the name Godfrey Coterel, I will rid the castle of your presence! En garde knave!" Wait, what the hell?!

I didn't even get a chance to figure out what was going on until Godfrey just started swinging his sword at me. The only thing I could do is just dodge to the side while pulling my sword out of its sheath. The hell is this guy's problem?! I didn't even a chance to ask when Godfrey turned towards me and charge at me again. I had to block his strike with my sword and for a guy that looks weak, he's got a pretty strong handle on his sword. We were in a stalemate for a few minutes before both of us backed up from each other. He then charged wildly at me, swinging that sword of his at me. Some of those swings weren't even close to hitting while the others I had to deflect with my sword. Eventually, he grew tired as he hunched over on his knees to catch his breath. "You're… haaa… pretty good… aren't you?"

"No, you just suck." I swear, I could see a vein bulging out of his head when I said that.

"Ohoho! So you can speak after all," Godfrey was shaking violently from my comment when suddenly, he just shot towards me, surprising me with that kind of speed. I ended up getting myself kicked in the stomach, causing me to tumble on the ground before I rolled myself into a crouch. "However, you just insulted me, therefore you insult the entirety of the House Coterel. You're punishment is death!"

Gods be damn, is this guy right in the head or something!? I looked behind Godfrey to see if that guy that was standing guard with was still there. Turns out he wasn't as I could see an empty post. Must've saw the commotion and went to get the captain. Now, to stall for-

 _BAM!_ "Argh!"

I was sent tumbling on the ground again, only with a slightly more pain in my stomach region than before. It wasn't until that I stopped rolling I've noticed something very wrong.

I've got sword sticking out of my stomach… Shit.

However, that's not the only thing I've noticed. I looked around to see everyone just looking at me. Like they were mocking me. I could even hear them whispering about me…

"Hey, you see that?"

"Yeah, about time someone gets this… thing off of our lands."

Wait, what are you-?!

"I hear that he killed two soldiers last night and ate them!"

"Really?! That's horrible!"

"I know and I heard that-!"

Shut up… SHUT UP!

Everywhere I look, I could hear the people around me whispering about me, making up rumors and above of all else… attention.

Why…? Why are people paying attention to me? Why..? Why…?! Shut up! Just shut the hell up! SHUT UP! "SSHHHHUUUUUUTTTT UUUUUUUPPPP!"

"Oi."

Upon the many voices that intruded in my head, that _one,_ that _one damned_ voice…! Slowly, I turned my head towards to where that voice came from and in place of Godrey, I saw a dark figure holding a sword that was oozing out a malicious aura, holding the sword ready to strike me down.

" **Demons like you should return back to the abyss.** "

I should've been scared. I should've been terrified that my life was about to end. But for some reason, I don't feel afraid. I don't feel any remorse. I just feel…

Peace.

* * *

Most people when they're having a nightmare, they would toss and turn until they would wake up in cold sweat. However for Josh, he would wake up normally like he had the most pleasant dream. As soon as Josh woke up, he took the time to check his body to see what he experienced from the dream world was real. Disappointed to find nothing on him, he looked out the window to see that it was still dark out. Seeing as he wasn't going back to sleep anytime soon, he got up from the bed, dressed in his armor, gauntlet and helmet and headed outside. Sneaking out of the barracks was the easy part, getting outside of the castle grounds was the hard part. While he could pretend that he was sent by his captain to guard the entrance, he would get questions on who was his captain and various of other questions, to which they would escort Josh to his captain, get caught lying and sent back to his barracks.

So, he opted to quietly sneak with his armor on to get past the other guards. Apparently, the other guards didn't have good hearing as the clanking of his armor were quickly dismissed as the wind. After many near misses, he could see the entrance at sight and quietly made his way to the entrance. But, as fate would have it, he could faintly hear voices coming from the other side of the entrance. With no time to spare, he hug the wall with his back and peered over the wall to see two guards stationed. ' _Damn it all! I should've seen this one coming! Now I got to find another way out!'_

Before he could take one step, he heard something particular from the guards. "Hey, you heard any new rumors recently?" One guard said while picking his nose.

"Well, you remember the Soulless Soldier rumor, right? The one where one of our comrade is actually soulless?"

"I wouldn't say he's our comrade, but yeah, I heard of that rumor. What of it?"

"Well, I heard something along the lines that the Soulless Soldier is seeing someone!"

"What?! Are you serious!? Who's this person?"

"Don't know really. All I know is that he's someone. But if I had to guess, must be someone really special to do something like that."

"Pfft, no way! If the rumor about the Soulless Soldier is true, then there's no way for a guy like that can have any feelings at all! There's just no way!"

After hearing the two guards gossiping about Josh yet again, Josh decided that it was time for him to leave and promptly left before anyone could see him. As he was sneaking his way around the castle, he couldn't help but sigh at what those two were saying about him. While it was true that he never did speak as much as a word to his fellow soldiers, he just didn't see much benefit talking at all. Sure, he could forge bonds between someone, but what if that person died during a battle or a war? If that were to happen, then they would be broken from within, never to speak to another again.

Frankly enough, he remembered how the rumor started months ago…

* * *

 _It was during the second week of their recruitment as various of soldier were walking towards their post for the day. Josh was among the many soldiers that were recruited into the military. His lifestyle was simple enough, guard the entrance, have lunch in the mess hall, go to the shack to work on his projects, come back to finish his shift and go back to the barracks to finish for the day, only to go do the same thing the very next day._

 _Most of the soldiers gave him an odd look as he was the only one wearing a full helmet, unlike the rest of the soldiers that were wearing a helmet that only covered the eyes and not the mouth. One brave soldier went up to Josh to get to know him better, but when they got closer to Josh, they could feel something was wrong. Cold sweat started to pour from his forehead as he could feel Josh's glare within the helmet. It wasn't until that the soldier that attempted to talk to him fainted from the sheer pressure from Josh._

 _The others saw this and thought that Josh sucked his life force from that lone soldier and promptly ran for their lives. Having no more of this nonsense, he walked away, leaving the poor soldier behind._

 _It was then that was the rumor of the Soulless Soldier was born._

* * *

Josh can only sigh at the memory as he sneaked his way through the castle. Often times, he thought what would happen if he had just talk to the soldier that came up to him, but thought against it. If he had help out that poor soldier, he would end up getting attention and would be seen as a dependable guy in the future.

In the end, he decided not to help and left the poor soldier to his own demise.

After about a minute or so of sneaking around the castle, he found himself at the castle courtyard. From where he was, he could see the full moon high above the sky. The moon, ever so glistening in the sky, like it is one great big diamond in the sky. Josh would often look at the moon through his window to take a look at the moon. To him, it reminded him of how peaceful it must be, living on the moon. He continued to stare at the moon for a few seconds before he heard footsteps coming from behind. With his soldier instincts kicking in, he went for his sword… to find it not there. Cursing his own luck to have no weapons on him, he turned to face his adversary and finds…

"Princess? The hell you doing here?"

Lissa, the royal princess to the capital of Ylisstol, the one where soldiers would dream of being with her, the one where many people would always smile with her energy…

...Is currently standing in front of Josh in her nightgown.

"I… Haaaa... should be asking you the same thing." While Josh may not think of Lissa in a perverted way in that nightgown and may only think of her as an annoyance, he couldn't help but admire the fact that she's doing whatever she can to help out her older sister. Few years ago, Lissa's father died due to an unknown cause. Emmeryn, the older sister of Lissa, took the title Exalt and began a campaign to end the war between Ylisse and Plegia. However, as she's leading the campaign, the people of Ylisstol began shouting insults at her and throwing things at her. One time during a speech, Emmeryn took a hit in the head by one of the people in the audience and was promptly taken away by the guards while the others were able to apprehend the perpetrator.

The damage, however, was already done and the healers advise her to take a rest for the day. Lissa and her brother, Chrom, meet her in the infirmary and began arguing about the future of Ylisse. Eventually, Emmeryn was able to persuade Chrom to let her keep doing what she was meant to do, bring peace to Ylisse and Plegia and afterwards, lead Yliss to an era of peace and prosperity. While that did calm Chrom down, he still wasn't convinced on letting her older sister get into harm's way, so he created a group called the Shepherds, a military group that was hand-picked by Chrom himself to defend Ylisse.

Even when the war stopped, there's still tension in the air between the two and it was clear that the Exalt was doing everything she can to bring a peaceful relationship between Ylisse and Plegia.

"Taking a little breather from all the excitement today, aren't you?" Josh said it more like a statement than a question.

"Y-Yeah. Today was really stressful. I thought I could go for a walk, you know?"

"In that nightgown? People are going to be thinking differently if you're going for a walk in that."

Lissa didn't say anything and opted to stare at the moon with Josh. About five minutes went by before Lissa spoke. "How do you do it Josh?"

Josh looked at Lissa in confusion as she asked that question. "What do you mean princess?"

"I mean, how can you remain the same, being ignorant about the world. Doesn't anything bother you at all besides attention?"

Josh didn't say anything for a full minute and just sighed. There was only one answer that Josh knew fully well. One answer that explains him fully. "Simple, I don't care."

Lissa stood still, shocked at what she had heard from Josh. A full minute had passed, two minutes and then three, until finally-

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU-!?"

Josh suddenly went up to Lissa and covered her mouth with his hands. Lissa looked at Josh with a surprised expression until Josh held up a single finger up to his mouth. Understanding the sign, Lissa nodded and Josh let her speak. "What do you mean you don't care?! Shouldn't the state's affair be of importance of you!?" Lissa exclaimed in a lower tone.

"Okay, I'll admit I should've worded that properly, but hear me out. What I mean is that should it affect me more than it should you?" Lissa looked slightly confused at that and Josh can only sigh (He's been doing a lot of that, hasn't he?) before explaining, "Look at it this way. I'm a soldier, you're a royal princess. Your job is to make sure that everyone in the country is happy. My job as a soldier is to make sure no one ends up dead."

"But… how can that be your answer? Shouldn't you be worry about what could happen to you?"

"If anything, I should be glad that something will happen to me." Lissa was confused by that statement from Josh, but Josh didn't explain anything further to Lissa as he went back to watching the moon. Lissa waited for Josh to say something, but something tells her that's as far as the conversation was going and went back to watching the moon with Josh.

However, none noticed the figure that was standing behind a wall to the courtyard.

* * *

The next day showed up and like yesterday, it was hot as usually. Everyone in town could feel the effects of the heat pouring down on them like a torrent. Josh and the other soldiers were no different as well. Josh could practically feel his sweat starting to form a pool inside of his helmet. The other guard that was standing beside him next to the entrance was no different, besides that he was wearing a half-helmet so to speak.

As always, Josh was diligently watching the entrance while he was thinking of how to fix the problem with the gun until…

"Joshua Normi!" Upon hearing his name being called out, Josh turned to see his captain coming towards him, looking rather angry for some reason.

' _I wonder what he wants now? I don't think I did anything to warrant his attention… have i?_ ' Thinking that his question will be answered, Josh and the guard beside him saluted to him when the captain reached them.

"At ease both of you." Josh and the guard dropped their salute and the captain cleared his throat before speaking, "Joshua, you are being summoned by the Exalt. Please make your way to the throne room immediately. I'll have another guard guard the entrance in your place." Josh didn't say anything as he was too shocked to hear that the Exalt had summoned of all people.

"Sir, if it's not too much trouble to ask, why am I being summoned? Was it something I did?" Josh frantically asked the captain.

"I'm sorry, but even I don't know the reason why the Exalt wanted you, but I would advise not to keep her waiting." The captain gave Josh a pat on the shoulder for reassurance before heading back to the castle.

In Josh's mind, he was frantically thinking of multiple reasons as to why the Exalt wanted to see him. Maybe it was because of something that he did in the past? Maybe there were too many soldiers in the military and he was one of the unlucky one to be relieved of duty? Or could it be… that he was meant for award?! ...Okay, maybe that was a bit farfetched as he didn't do anything to capture any significant attention. Nevertheless, he ended just giving up on whatever thought came to mind and headed straight to the throne room.

The throne room was as grand as ever with the pillars stretching towards the ceiling, the red carpet leading up from the end of the room to the throne itself and extravagant flags decorate the halls. At the throne, there lies the Exalt herself, wearing a robe that can only describe one to be of noble birth. There was also that weird… crown thing on her head, but dismissed it as it was not relevant at the moment. Besides her were her siblings, Lissa and Chrom. Lissa, being the royal princess that she was, was dressed in a regal dress that only a noble would wear. Chrom, on the other hand, was wearing a custom armor that was tinted blue, a shoulder pauldron on his left arm and his main choice of a weapon, Falchion, a weapon said to be made by Naga. It's a weapon that only the Ylissean royal family may use in a time of need.

Once Josh was close to the throne and the Exalt, Josh knelt down to one knee while placing one arm cross to his chest and bowed. "Your Grace. You summoned me?"

"Yes. You may raise your head." Josh stood up upon hearing the Exalt's request and saw the Exalt smiling at him. Josh couldn't help but feel a little blush rushing to his face. Luckily, he was helmet so it didn't show, "Joshua Normi, I've called you here to ask you of something."

Josh raised an eyebrow beneath his helmet. "What is it that you wish to ask, Your Grace?"

"What do you think of this country's state of affairs?"

Josh was taken back by that question. "Um, Your Grace? Shouldn't that question be better asked by someone who's better experience than me? I'm just a common soldier."

"Yes, but it's important to have the opinion of our people, so that I could better reflect upon myself to being a better ruler for all the people in Ylisse."

Josh couldn't find anything wrong with that argument, so he nodded and thought for a moment. He could tell the Exalt what she wanted to hear and be done with this meeting, but something tells him that he needed to tell her what he really thought about the country. "Your Grace? Will you permit me to speak freely? To say what's really on my mind?"

"If it's to improve this country and myself as Exalt, you may do so." Josh took in a deep breath as soon as the Exalt permitted him to do so.

And so, he did.

"To me, it's sound like this country won't last very long with the way things are going."

"You mean to tell me that Emmeryn's just slacking off?! That she isn't doing her best?!" Chrom looked like he was about to stab Josh with Falchion.

"Yes. If things keep going the way they are, this country would be looking at its downfall."

"How dare yo-!"

"Chrom." Chrom stood shocked in place as he heard his sister voice call out to him, "I know that you don't wish for any harm to come to me, but we must learn from the people so that we may better ourselves in the future."

"I-I know sis, but I just don't you to be hurt…" Chrom's expression morphed into a sadden expression, leaving Emmeryn to copy Chrom's expression as well.

This only lasted for about a few minutes before Emmeryn addressed Josh once again. "I apologize for that. The years that we've endured to bring peace to our country has been affecting us as well."

"Well, at least you admit you're being human. That's a start."

"Oh? What do you mean Joshua?" The Exalt glanced over to her side to see Chrom looking down with that sad expression still on his face, but upon closer inspection, she could see that his fist tightened.

"It's simple really. Humans, like you and me, make mistakes. We share emotions, we need each other's comfort, we even forge bonds with one another. However, there are times when people don't show that many emotions and are thought to be people without any souls at all. Even rulers, like you, must make a decision that would either help benefit the people or bring its downfall to those around them. They would even have to sacrifice some people in order to win some wars, don't you agree?"

The Exalt didn't say anything else after Josh's explanation. Chrom and Lissa looked like they've gotten the message, but looked unsure about how to respond. "I understand. I must be prepared to make such a decision, correct?"

Josh was taken back by that response since he was kinda expecting the Exalt to either deny that fact that she needed to save as many lives as she could or something else. The same could be said for Lissa and Chrom as well. "W-well, not now, no. What I'm saying is that you have to be prepare for the future for we have no idea what it has in store for us. No matter what plan we make nor the amount of preparations we have, we have to watch out for the inevitable. I told you before that this country won't last long, now you know the reason why."

"If you continue to rule for peace and prosperity, chances are that other countries will try to start another war with you. One that we're just getting out of."

No one in the throne room said anything to that. It was true that for the last twelve years, Ylisse was starting to pull its troops back to their homeland and peace was starting to come back. The people of Ylisstol were starting to see the Exalt as symbol of peace, one that would lead Ylisstol to everlasting prosperity. And yet, Josh's opinion on the matter of the country seemed to changed that…

...For better or worse, no one knew for certain.

"...I see." The Exalt then bowed, "I thank you for your opinion."

Josh just huffed in annoyance. "Well, if that's what you want, then I'll excuse myself. By your leave, Your Grace."

The Exalt opened her mouth to say 'You may resume your duties,' but something seemed to cross her mind and closed her mouth. "Actually… there's also another reason why I brought you here as well."

"Oh? What would that be, Your Grace?"

Emmeryn motioned her hand towards Chrom. "Would you like to promotion? I would like to promote you as the Shepherd's advisor."

"..."

"...What?"

* * *

 _Journal Entry #7_

 _It's been awhile since I've written another entry into this journal. As of right now, I'm still a guard posted by the entrance to the castle, but that's fine, so long as I get paid. However, as I was working as a guard, I apparently picked the attention of the royal princess, Lissa. Lissa, being herself, forced her way into my lifestyle of peace and won't leave me the damn alone._

 _I wonder why I haven't kicked her out or forced her to leave me alone? Eh, it's probably due to her character. That or the fact if I tried to do anything to her, I'll be labeled as a criminal. I don't need more attention on me... Well, if I had to think of one good thing about her, she does heal me if something goes wrong with one of my creations, so that's fine._

 _Anyways, I've invented a new creation that I will use in the future. I called my new creation a gun. Basically, it's like a bow, but it has the potential of carrying a projectile at high-speed, meaning that no one could see it coming. Unfortunately, I still have to fix it and add some new function to it before I could fully use it. Hopefully, it won't blow up like last time. In relation to that, I've come up with another idea that instead of the flash-bomb I used on Lissa, I create another bomb that could explode in an area like my flash-bomb, but instead, it could be used to eliminate multiple enemies. The idea itself is still a work-in-progress, but I hope to see some results._

 _Onto other news, I was summoned by the Exalt to discuss with her my opinion of Ylisstol. I told her what I said before, peace doesn't last long and we all have to prepare ourselves for the future yet to come. The Exalt… took it well, I guess? So long as I'm not fired nor labeled a criminal, that's fine by me. However, what surprised me is that the Exalt wanted me. Me, of all people, to be the Shepherd's advisor! I told her that I decline the offer and that I would rather be a simple soldier guarding the entrance. Lissa, on the other hand, wanted me to join the Shepherds as she was also among that group as well. She'd even gave me that look that was practically saying, '_ Say no, I dare you.' _Seeing no choice in the matter, I reluctantly said that I would join the Shepherd's under the condition that I still work as a guard at the castle and that I get a raise. The Exalt saw no problem to that and agree to those terms of mine, but I get the feeling that Chrom wanted to cut me down for making the Exalt accepting these terms of mine._

 _Eh, he could think what he wants, I couldn't be give a damn about it._

 _With this, I can safely conclude that there's no new development at the moment other than some new project ideas. This is Joshua Normi, age 20. Before I was a farmer, then I was a soldier for Ylisstol's military. Now, I'm the advisor for the Shepherd's against my will. However, even if I'm a part of the Shepherds, I'm still a soldier for my home._

 _Just a soldier._


End file.
